Trace-fastener



M. M. BOWLUS. Trace-Fastener.

Patented Jan. 20,1880.

INVEN'I OR 77?; 77W, mfoj ATTORNEYS WITNESSES fly/ /fwiw'o/y UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

MILLARD M. BOWLUS, OF BOWLUSVILLE, QHIO.

TRACE-FASTENER.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 223,701, dated January 20, 1880;

Application filed November 26, 1879.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, MILLARD M. BOWLUS, of Bowlusville, in the county of Clarke and State of Ohio, have invented a new and Improved Trace-Fastener, of which the following is a specification.

The object of myinvention is'to provide a safe,

easily-operated, and strong device for fastening the ends of the tracesto the single-tree.

The device consists of a flat metal spring attached to the back edge of the single-tree, and provided with a notch which receives the edge of the end of the trace, and, together with an adjacent n0tcl1 in the sin gle-tree, holds the endof said trace on the single-tree.

In the accompanying drawings, Figure 1 is a top view of a single-tree provided with my improvement, and Fig. 2 is a rear edge view of the same.

Similar letters of reference indicate corresponding parts.

Referring to the drawings, A is the singletree, on the ends B B whereof the traces are placed.

O is the trace-fastener. It is composed of a flat spring of brass or other suitable metal, having at its inner end, a, two projecting ears,

' b 1). Near the opposite end, 0, the fiat metal spring is twisted at right angles to its edge and formed into a curved notch, d.

The fastener thus formed is applied to the back edge e of the single-tree A, one fastener to each of the ends B B, and the said fasteners are attached to the single-tree by bending the ears I) I) around the same, and by a screw, f, driven through a hole at the end a of the springfastener into the wood of the singletree. That part of the fastener containing the curved notch 01 projects above the top h of the single-tree, and the notch 01 is in line with a notch, t, in the rear edge of the single-tree near each end. The bent end 0 of the fasteners beyond the notch d is for the finger .to press against when the trace is attached.

The manner of operating the device is as follows: The trace D, hav-in g a transverse slot in its end 70, is slipped on one of the ends B of the single-tree. The finger is at the same time pressed againstthe end 0, so as to force the spring-fastener back in the direction of the arrow. The trace is then pushed upon the single-tree until it is in thevnotch i, when the finger is removed from the end 0, whereby the spring-fastener springs back against the edge of the single-tree and the end It enters the notch 01, where it is held in the manner shown in the drawings.

The notches d i prevent the trace from slipping laterally, and the fastener G prevents, by the trace being held in the notch d, the trace from slipping from the notch t in the singletree.

I am aware that a spring has been pivoted to a single-tree and adapted to enter the eye of the trace-fastening; but

What I claim is-- A trace-fastener consisting of a flat spring having at one end the ears I), and having the ends 0 twisted to form a curved notch, in combination with a sin gle-tree having the notch 17, as shown and described.

MILLARD M. BOWLUS. 

